Lately, a drone racing competition took place, where six racing drones resembled and the drones where remotely controlled by the pilots. Each of the pilots was wearing a set of goggles that had a wireless connection to a camera on the drone. "They will be going from 50 to 60 mph on this track. If you really opened it up, most would go over 100 mph," said Zach Carlson, shop manager at Falcon Hobby. "You're sitting in your chair, but you feel like you're moving, and while your quad is out there zipping around super fast, I'm sitting there moving my head back and forth. I feel like I'm actually in it," said Nick Hoffman, one of the competitors.

The space above your head--currently filled with sky, maybe some clouds, and the passing bird or plastic bag--is valuable. Many a company would rather see it filled with drones, saving lives with emergency drugs, delivering items you ordered online, monitoring crops, and handling a bajillion other tasks. But if given free rein, some worry, these quadcopter capitalists might darken the sky with their machines, deafen us with their buzzing, and shower debris on those below when they inevitably collide. To avoid an aerial apocalypse, the FAA has so far taken a restrictive approach to drones. It limits commercial operation by requiring permits and imposing restrictions like banning beyond-line-of-sight flights and nighttime operations.

On Wednesday the Department of Transportation announced the launch of a pilot program that will lead to new regulations. On Wednesday the Department of Transportation announced the launch of a pilot program that will lead to new regulations. Here's a hypothetical: How tolerant would you be of a drone flying over your head or zooming through your backyard, if it were carrying life-saving medicine to the scene of a hard-to-reach accident? The U.S. Department of Transportation plans to collect the answers to questions like this, and a slew of other data, in a new test project called the Integration Pilot Program. After combing through 149 applications from state, local and tribal governments seeking to partner with some of the world's leading technology companies, Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao announced the winners Wednesday.

BISMARCK, NORTH DAKOTA – U.S. Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao on Wednesday announced 10 sites for a test program aimed at increasing the use of unmanned aircraft for projects that range from monitoring crops and oil pipelines in North Dakota to applying mosquito-killing treatments in Florida and package deliveries in Tennessee. President Donald Trump signed a directive last year to establish the "innovation zones" that allow exemptions to some drone regulations, such as flying over people, nighttime flights and flights where the aircraft can't be seen by the operator. States, communities and tribes selected to participate would devise their own trial programs in partnership with government and industry drone users. "Data gathered from these pilot projects will form the basis of a new regulatory framework to safely integrate drones into our national airspace," Chao said in a statement. Chao, who called the rapidly developing drone industry the biggest development since the jet age, said about 150 applications were received.

Apple and Amazon were passed over in a program spearheaded by the Trump administration that would have given them a greater say in how the drone industry is regulated. On Wednesday, the US Transportation Department announced 10 winning drone pilot projects that will help more unmanned aerial vehicles take to the skies. Among the winners were Silicon Valley tech giants Google, Intel, Qualcomm and Microsoft. However, Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao said there are'no losers' and she thinks dozens of the applicants not chosen could be greenlighted by the FAA in the coming months. Selected winners will be able to conduct experimental drone flights that are beyond the rules outlined by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

Future Tense is a partnership of Slate, New America, and Arizona State University that examines emerging technologies, public policy, and society. The drone future that we all know is coming--more drones, everywhere, ferrying our stuff to wherever we want it sent--isn't coming just yet. Before flying robots can speckle the sky from coast to coast, the government needs to pass regulations that allow drones to fly beyond the line of sight of the operator, over densely populated areas, and at night--all things currently prohibited unless the drone operator gets a special waiver from the Federal Aviation Administration. Drones also have to be integrated into the national air traffic control system, which will have to help coordinate their movement and ensure the autonomous flyers don't collide in the sky. But before any of that gets off the ground, the U.S. Department of Transportation is giving the green light to 10 areas across the country to set up test sites for drones to do things like delivery, mosquito-killing, and security.

Nationwide is making a venture capital investment in a company that specializes in artificial intelligence (AI) and drone technology. A company release said that the insurer is making an investment in property insurance solutions developer Betterview, as part of its commitment to finance over $100 million of venture capital in "customer-centric solutions." Since it first announced its commitment to invest more than $100 million of venture capital in August, Nationwide has made nine investments including Betterview. "Drones and artificial intelligence will play a critical role in meeting the needs of our customers in the future of both underwriting and claims response. It's why we're so excited about this partnership with Betterview," said Nationwide chief innovation officer Scott Sanchez.

The US government is making good on its promise to expand the use of drones. The Department of Transportation has named the 10 projects that will participate in its Unmanned Aircraft Systems Integration Pilot Program, and they represent a wide swath of the country. Most of them are municipal or state government bodies, including the cities of Reno and San Diego, Memphis' County Airport Authority and the Transportation Departments for Kansas, North Carolina and North Dakota. However, the rest are notable: the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma will be part of the program, as will the University of Alaska-Fairbanks and Virginia Tech. Notably, Virginia Tech is working with Google's Project Wing drone delivery initiative as well as transportation and tech giants like Airbus, AT&T and Intel.

President Donald Trump signed a directive last year to establish the "innovation zones" that allow exemptions to some drone regulations, such as flying over people, nighttime flights and flights where the aircraft can't be seen by the operator.

A Memphis Airport Authority official told Reuters that it had also been picked and that FedEx Corp is a partner that will use drones for inspection of aircraft at its hub in Tennessee as well as parts deliveries for aircraft and some package deliveries between the airport and other Memphis locations. Another partner is General Electric Co, Memphis said.